Oil seal



April 1942- J. w. SAFFOLD 2,280,857

OIL SEAL Filed Aug. 17, 1939 2 Sheets-Sheet l 'II/A VIII Q \W 6 I 11 L55 12 Tyyg I 8 N P l l i F =1 l I l l I J 1 11 Fig. 1

INVENTOR.

BY h mw 3;

ATTORA April 28, 1942. r J. w. SAFFOLD 2,280,857

OIL SEAL Filed Aug. 17, 1939 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Fig.3.

ATTO

Patented Apr. 28, 1942 UNITED, STATES PATENT OFFICE 1 Claim.

This invention relates, as indicated, to an oil seal, but has referencemore particularly to a seal which is especially adapted for preventingescape of oil from the bearings of wheel and axle assemblies, asemployed in automotive vehicles.

Attempts have heretofore been made to provide seals for the aforesaidpurpose, but in each case, the elements of which the seal is composedare either worn out by the rotation of the wheel or are attacked orcorroded by the grease or oil which comes into contact with the seal.This necessitates frequent replacement or renewal of parts and rendersthe cost of maintenance prohibitive in most cases.

The present invention has as its primary object the provision of an oilseal which is inexpensive to manufacture and install, which is highlyefficient for its intended purposes, and which is virtually free fromcorrosion or wear.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent duringthe course of the following description. I

In the accompanying drawings, forming a part 01' this specification, andin which like numerals are employed to designate like parts throughoutthe same,

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view of a wheel and axleassembly embodying the novel oil sealf Fig. 2 is a plan view of the oilseal;

Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the oil seal, taken on the line 3-3of Fig. 2; and

Fig. 4 is an enlarged detail of the oil seal.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, Fig. l discloses a wheeland axle assembly comprising an axle I having a tapered end 2, on whicha hub 3 is mounted, the hub being provided with a flange 4 to which aresecured as by means of bolts 5, the wheel 6 and a brake drum 1.

The axle I is enclosed by the axle housing 8 which is provided with aflange 9 to which the oil seal of the present invention is secured.

The oil seal comprises an annular member 10 formed of sheet metal andprovided with a radially-extending flange ll, whereby the member issecured to the flange 9 of the axle housing, as by means of bolts l2 andnuts i3, and is further pro vided with an inwardly-extending radialflange H, which supports a ring l5, of V-shaped crosssection, and formedof synthetic rubber, such for example as Duprene or Thiokol.

The ring l comprises diverging tapered flanges l6 and I! which engagethe inboard portion of the hub 3 and are flexed outwardly to some extentby said hub, as indicated by the solid lines in Fig. 4. The space l8between the flanges i6 and ll of the rubber ring [5 and the hub 3 isadapted to be filled with grease or a similar lubricant.

The rubber ring and the grease thus form a seal at this point which iseffective to prevent escape of oil or grease from the bearings I9, andsince the flanges l6 and ll of the ring are under constant tension, thegrease within the ring cannot escape or leak out while the ring and hubare stationary. Moreover, the ring being made of a synthetic rubberwhich is not injured or otherwise affected by the grease, will lastindefinitely. Such grease as finds its way between the ends of theflanges l6 and I1 and the adjacent portions of the hub forms alubricating film which is effective to prevent abrasion or wear of therubber ring. If, when the. vehicle is started, lubricant has worked itsway to said ends of the flanges l6 and H, in quantities beyond what areneeded for said lubricating film, centrifugal force will urge the excessback into the space l8, thus preventing seeping out or throwing off ofthe lubricant.

It is to be understood that the form of my invention, herein shown anddescribed, is to be taken as a preferred example of the same, and thatvarious changes in the shape, size and arrangement of parts may beresorted to, without departing from the spirit of my invention, or thescope of the subjoined claim.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

The combination with relatively rotatable members, of a unitary oil sealcooperating therewith, said seal comprising a metal holder provided withan annular flange, a one-piece, annular member formed of syntheticrubber having a thickened portion, said flange being embedded in andbonded to said thickened portion to secure said annular member againstrotation relative to said flange, and being provided with tapered spacedflanges diverging toward and engaging said rotatable member andterminating in relatively sharp edges, said annular member being of lessinitial diameter at said edges than the diameter of the rotatable memberat points respectively engaged by said edges whereby said flange edgesengage said member under tension with a pressure dependent solely uponthe resiliency of the material and forming with said rotatable member arelatively deep, annular grease chamber about said member, the taperedflanges engaging said rotatable member by a line contact and presentingsurfaces converging away from the rotatable member to force grease fromthe edges of the flanges back into said grease chamber by centrifugalforce as the rotatable member rotates.

JAMES WEBB SAFFOLD.

